Inter Miami CF Hires Diego Alonso As First-Ever Head Coach For The Club

MIAMI (CBSMiami) – Inter Miami CF has landed a head coach.

CBS4's Mike Cugno confirmed with a league source on Sunday that the club will hire Diego Alonso. Inter Miami officially announced Alonso's hiring on Monday.

"In Diego we found a manager that fits our culture and has a strong desire to build a winning club for our fans. He brings a lot of experience and championship-winning mentality as we begin our drive to be among the best clubs in the Americas," said Inter Miami CF Sporting Director Paul McDonough. "We have big aspirations for our club and believe Diego has the right drive, passion and leadership to accomplish our goals."

The retired Uruguayan striker joins Inter Miami after an impressive stint in Mexico, where he won three titles, qualified his teams to two FIFA Club World Cups, reached two cup finals and developed some of the country's best players in only five years.

Most recently, he led C.F. Monterrey from May 2018 until September 2019, and only a year after his arrival, he guided the team to the prestigious Concacaf Champions League title, the continental competition that crowns the best team in North America, Central America and the Caribbean, triumphing over rivals Tigres UANL in the final on May 2019. The victory earned Rayados a spot in the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup. Alonso also led the team to the 2018 Copa MX Apertura final in his first year. Overall, Alonso lead Monterrey for 72 games, scoring a total of 118 goals and conceding only 80 for a final record of 39 wins 13 draws and 20 losses.

Prior to taking the job with Monterrey, the attacking-minded manager spent over three years as head coach of Liga MX side C.F. Pachuca, taking over in December 2014. Alonso led the team to the 2016 Liga MX Clausura league title and a 2017 Copa MX Apertura runner-up finish. He also led Pachuca to the 2016/17 Concacaf Champions League title, which qualified the team for the 2017 FIFA Club World Cup. Los Tuzos then achieved a historic third-place finish for the first time ever in the competition.

Alonso is the only head coach in history to win the Concacaf Champions League with two different teams and is now only the second current MLS coach to have won the competition, in its current format.